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It’s no secret that the Keystone issue is a political powder keg. Neither is it a secret that it’s a controversial topic pitting two traditional foes: environmentalists versus big oil. Very murky, however, is what benefit Keystone XL offers the United States.As in so many situations, in order to understand the present, we need to understand the past and Keystone has a bit of a checkered and rapidly evolving past. With blinding speed, progress on the Keystone project began in 2005 when it was pr

For the 46.5 million Americans living below the poverty line, 16 million of which are children, life has become a consistent struggle. This struggle does not simply begin and end with monetary concerns, but in fact surrounds both a physical and mental exertion of the individual.Using the national U.S. census and NCCP, researchers found that in 2013, the poverty line rested at $11,490, a number which equates an individual working full time while only making $5.00 – far below the national minimum

A law that would have meant a DUI conviction if you had trace amounts of THC in your blood failed in the California Legislature last week. AB 2500, by Assemblyman Jim Frazier, would have meant you could be convicted of driving under the influence if any amount of THC metabolites were found in your blood stream. But the legislation was later amended to reflect a 2 ng/mL (nanograms-per-milliliter) blood limit, which is much lower than the 5-nanogram limit being discussed by many prosecutors and

A national discussion regarding the state of civil rights in the U.S. exploded after racial comments made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling were made public, followed by news that he has been banned for life from the NBA.However, another story broke on the same day NBA Commissioner Adam Silver held his press conference that might be even more important for the future of civil rights in the country: a federal court struck down Wisconsin’s voter ID law. The law first passed in 2011, as a measure

There is considerable news in the press about setting the minimum wage at $10.10 per hour. Recently, Connecticut became the first state to pass this as the minimum wage. Is this the answer? Or is the answer a program that seeks to eliminate unemployment? Anyone who has ever taken an entry level economics class has seen the graph for the labor market with supply and demand meeting an equilibrium point. Under that model, unemployment is solely caused by wages being higher than the equilibrium poi

"All politics is local." - former House Speaker Tip O’Neill The Village Square is about as local and as grassroots as an organization can get, taking a very bottom-up approach to problem-solving. They serve as brokers of conversation with the goal of setting a friendly tone in civic debate. They are about agreeing to disagree, but doing so in a manner where opposing views are respected and listened to. They are about discussing facts, not distortions, and reaching conclusions after the facts ar

There are people in the world who have sincere religious objections to taking their clothes off in public places while total strangers stuff money in their underwear. These people should not become strippers. There are other people who have a sincere and constitutionally protected right not to engage in usury, or the lending of money at interest. These people should not own banks. And I personally know a number of people who object, on perfectly valid religious grounds, to killing or causing t

Once again, Arizona is back in the headlines, and once again, it's caused a national uproar. As the same-sex marriage debate continues to snowball in the public square, the Grand Canyon state now waits to see whether or not Governor Jan Brewer will sign the controversial 'Religious Freedom Restoration Act'. Supporters of the law say that it only strengthens existing laws and seeks to ensure everyone's religious freedoms are protected against religious discrimination. Opponents of the law, howe

With the November general election a few months away and several primary and special elections ahead, the Presidential Commission on Election Administration released a report in January outlining several recommendations to shore up voting lines, increase voter participation and registration, and improve the voter experience. The commission specifically called for states to encourage the use of schools as polling places. Yet, some state election boards and school administrations have pushed back

Tuesday, the Kansas House or Representatives passed a bill HB 2453, with the short title “Protecting religious freedom regarding marriage.” The bill is now being debated in the Senate, where its chances for passing look good. HB 2453 stipulates, among other things, that sincere religious believers can refuse to “provide any services, accommodations, advantages, facilities, goods, or privileges; provide counseling, adoption, foster care and other social services; or provide employment or employ